Re: ACETOMINEPHINE(SP?) RECALLED AFTER METAL FRAGMENTS FOUND IN PILLS!

[Guest guest]

Thanks for the info . Another friend had mentioned this earlier, but

didn't have all the details.

-Tommie

ACETOMINEPHINE(SP?) RECALLED AFTER METAL FRAGMENTS

FOUND IN PILLS!

JUST SAW THIS ON A ABC NEWS BREAK, FOUND AN ARTICLE NEW ALERT AND WANTED TO

SEND.....BE VERY CAREFUL!

11M bottles of acetaminophen recalled

By ANDREW BRIDGES, Associated Press Writer 12 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Check your medicine cabinet: Millions of bottles of the widely

used pain reliever acetaminophen — some sold as long as three years ago —

are being recalled because they may contain metal fragments.

The recall affects 11 million bottles containing varying quantities of

500-milligram acetaminophen caplets made by the Perrigo Co. The pills were

sold under store brands by Wal-Mart, CVS, Safeway and more than 120 other

major retailers, the

*Food and Drug

Administration*<http://search.news.yahoo.com/search/news/?p=Food+and+Drug+Admini\

stration>said.

At least one chain started pulling the pills from store shelves

Thursday.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or illness. The contaminated

pills included metal fragments ranging in size from " microdots " to portions

of wire one-third of an inch long, the FDA said. The FDA could not describe

further the type of metal.

Perrigo discovered the metal bits during quality-control checks done after

the company discovered its equipment was wearing down prematurely, the FDA

said. Agency officials declined to say whether the metal found in the pills

caused the damage or resulted from it.

A company investigation turned up metal in roughly 200 pills of the 70

million it passed through a metal detector, according to the FDA.

Consumers who take any of the contaminated pills could suffer minor stomach

discomfort or possible cuts to the mouth and throat, the FDA said, adding

that the risk of serious injury was remote. Anyone who suspects they have

been injured should contact a doctor.

Acetaminophen is best known as the drug in products sold under the Tylenol

brand, but is widely available in typically less expensive generic versions.

The drug, along with aspirin and ibuprofen, is one of the most widely used

pain relievers available without a doctor's note.

The retail market for the pain-relievers is worth more than $2 billion a

year, according to Perrigo, which bills itself as the world's largest

manufacturer of store-brand nonprescription drugs.

, 44, of Arlington, Va., said his wife buys store brand

acetaminophen and he wanted to find out more about the problem.

" If it's not something that has any chance of recurring, then I really

wouldn't worry, " he said.

The 129 retailers that could potentially be affected by the recall include

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., CVS Corp., Safeway Stores and SuperValu Inc. They

typically sell the Perrigo-made pills under their own or other private

labels.

CVS will stop selling its own brand of 500-milligram acetaminophen caplets

and pull bottles from store shelves nationwide, spokesman Mike DeAngelis

said. Messages left with the other chains were not immediately returned.

Perrigo, based in Allegan, Mich., said the pills contained raw material

purchased from a third-party supplier and affected 383 batches. Messages

left with two company spokesmen were not immediately returned.

The FDA declined to identify the source of the raw materials. However, the

agency doesn't suspect the contamination was deliberate, said Dr.

Throckmorton, deputy director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and

Research.

Molly Walsh, 21, a Washington University student shopping at a CVS

pharmacy in Washington, D.C., said she didn't plan to toss any of the

store-brand drugs at home that she'd bought to save money. Nor did she plan

to stop buying the generic products.

" It's still going to be cheaper and I'm still going to be broke after the

recall, " Walsh said.

The recall does not affect Tylenol. Nor should the recall cause a shortage

of acetaminophen, the FDA said.

The voluntary recall is considered a Class II recall since it covers

products that might cause a temporary health problem or pose only a slight

threat of a serious nature, the FDA said.

Consumers with questions can call Perrigo toll free at .

The FDA would not say in which states the pills had been sold, but instead

recommended that customers determine whether products they bought are being

recalled by checking the store list on the FDA Web site,

http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/perrigo/perrigocustlist.html<http://us.rd.y\

ahoo.com/dailynews/ap/ap_on_he_me/storytext/drug_warning/20892489/SIG=1237u589c/\

*http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/perrigo/perrigocustlist.html>,

and the batch list,

http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/perrigo/perrigobatchlist.html<http://us.rd.\

yahoo.com/dailynews/ap/ap_on_he_me/storytext/drug_warning/20892489/SIG=124espdfk\

/*http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/perrigo/perrigobatchlist.html>.

The batch numbers appear on the container's label.

It wasn't immediately clear where Perrigo made the pills. Its main factories

are in the United States and

*Israel* <http://search.news.yahoo.com/search/news/?p=Israel>, with

secondary plants in the United Kingdom, Mexico, Germany and China.

___

Associated Press Writer Ann Sanner contributed to this report.

On the Net:

Perrigo Co.:

http://www.perrigo.com/<http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/ap/ap_on_he_me/storytex\

t/drug_warning/20892489/SIG=10prgq24d/*http://www.perrigo.com/>

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